NATION/WORLD

The pro-life rally on the sidewalk outside the U.S. Supreme Court Dec. 1 found much to cheer about as the nine justices inside heard arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization.

In the Supreme Court's first major abortion case in decades -- which looked at Mississippi's ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy -- the majority of justices Dec. 1 seemed willing to let that ban stay in place.

Many were not Catholic, but they arrived at St. Joseph Catholic Church the night of Nov. 30 nonetheless -- first a trickle, then a steady stream.

St. Joseph teaches people to learn to take life as it comes and to accept what God has in mind, Pope Francis said.

"Racial reconciliation -- reconciliation in general -- is a matter of the heart," retired Bishop Curtis J. Guillory of Beaumont, Texas, said during a recent night of prayer and discussion about race relations in the U.S.

When the Supreme Court hears oral arguments Dec. 1 for the biggest abortion case in decades, all eyes -- and ears -- will be on the court.

Bradley Gregory, associate professor of biblical studies at The Catholic University of America in Washington, said today "most scientists see that science can inform faith and faith can inform science."

Catholics and Orthodox Christians must increasingly work together where they can, Pope Francis told Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople.

Continuing to focus on the care of migrants and refugees, Pope Francis urged a U.N. organization to do more to convince nations to open safe and legal pathways for migration and to regularize people who have entered countries without the proper documents.

There is no greater poverty than a life without faith in God, Pope Francis said in a recent message.